Home Improvement Stack Exchange
Home Improvement Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [ice]

for questions dealing with problems caused by ice

54 questions
16
votes
2 answers

What are the pros and cons of installing a roof heating cable?

Had some roof work done last year after mother nature abused my house by way of an errant tree branch. I had always suspected my roof had poor ventilation, most notably when I wound up with a 200 lb chunk of ice going from roof to ground (about 20…
user45
14
votes
13 answers

How do you make outdoor wooden stairs less slippery in winter?

Outdoors, I have some wooden stairs leading up to my front door. The wooden stairs are covered in high-gloss wood preservative. In winter, snow and ice are deposited onto the stair-steps. The bottoms of my shoes slip and slide on the high gloss…
Samuel Muldoon
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13
votes
5 answers

To rake or not to rake snow off of roof

First time owning a house with a roof that can be raked, It is a shingled roof. The question is - Should I be doing it? We live in Northeast (it's snowing as we speak) and icicles do form on the roof in several places. I assumed I need to rake the…
user129995
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12
votes
3 answers

How do I handle significant snow and ice dams on a 4/12 gable roof with ridge vents?

It is our first winter in a new-to-us house, that has a pretty flat roof (3/12-to-4/12 pitch), and a ridge vent along the entire top of the roof. We just had the snowiest December on record (Minnesota), which put a good 36" of snow on the roof,…
MarkD
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6
votes
7 answers

How do I prevent ice stalagmites from building up on the furnace exhaust?

I have a high efficiency furnace that exhausts via a pvc pipe out the side of the house, the trouble is the moisture from the exhaust forms an ice stalagmite in my driveway in the cold weather. Are there ways to prevent this ice from building up…
Tester101
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5
votes
2 answers

How do I repair/reattach downspout and gutter after snow/ice damage?

We've had a heavy dose of snow here in the Boston area it has taken a toll on our gutters and downspouts. The downspout at the rear of my house filled with ice and pulled away from the elbow that comes down from the gutter: Also, ice did some…
Shimon Rura
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5
votes
6 answers

How can I thaw a frozen exterior drain quickly?

I have a driveway that is angled down slightly towards my house. About two feet before the garage there are two long drains that cover most of the drive way. Right now one is 100% frozen and the other is 1/2 frozen. I am getting so much water build…
vanessa
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5
votes
3 answers

How can I create a radiant heat system for melting ice on wood steps?

Our house has wood stairs to descend from the front porch. On maybe 15 - 30 days out of the year a layer of ice forms on the stairs, posing a safety hazard. Even with our familiarity with the issue and attempts to consistently use the handrail,…
Pat James
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4
votes
5 answers

How can I safely remove snow from my roof?

How do I remove snow from my roof? How about 4" of snow covered with 1/2" of ice? How do I know when I should risk getting out there to try to remove it? We just received a notice from The New York City Office of Emergency Management saying: The…
barclay
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4
votes
3 answers

What outdoor materials can be damaged by by ice?

I'm relatively new to this snow thing. I also have a new vinyl deck and paver stone walkway I'd like to take care of. I have a basic understanding of how water can get into things, freeze, and break them apart. I'd like to prevent this from…
Doug T.
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3
votes
2 answers

Why am I still getting icicles after blowing insulation?

I just had insulation blown in last year hoping I would get rid of the icicles forming and dripping all over my front stairs, I also have gutter caps on. Of note, the roofer two years ago put a metal right angled guard if front of the opening of the…
Homebody
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3
votes
2 answers

Is a little ice on the cooling coils ok?

This is our first summer in a new house which has central air. It was a bit hotter today than normal so the AC was running for a long time. After awhile we noticed the airflow stopped because the cooling coil completely iced over (about 1/4" of…
Jay
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3
votes
5 answers

furnace condensate - system to collect and then drain periodically

We have a condo in Northern WI that gets used sporadically over the winter, we keep the furnace running at a low temp while we are not there. Last winter the furnace condensate draining into the septic ended up freezing and blocking the pipe where…
Guy Starbuck
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3
votes
5 answers

How can a steep driveway be kept safe in snowy climates?

I looked at a house today and one of its drawbacks was that it had a very long, steep driveway. In New England we get thick snow, sleet and ice and with a steep driveway I am concerned the car might have trouble getting up it, or might slide off it…
Tyler Durden
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3
votes
4 answers

How do I prevent ice dams from forming on the eaves of an addition?

I added an addition several years age and now have eaves that form ice dams I understand that ventilating the attic may help but that is not an option. I have tried heated wires on the lower edge of the shingles but they are not durable and very…
PJames
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